Op-ed:Country-of-origin labeling is key to transparency
Montana Farmers Union is a longtime supporter of country-of-origin labeling (COOL). MFU and National Farmers Union fought for years to label meat, both to give consumers a choice at the meat counter, and to aid U.S. producers, because when given the choice, consumers in this country will buy U.S. beef and not think twice.
The meat-packing industry has always fought against COOL, stating that consumers didn’t really need to know what country their meat came from. However, we finally prevailed and a federal COOL law went into effect in 2013, but COOL was repealed for beef and pork by Congress during negotiations with the World Trade Organization.
The key word here is “any.” A box or side of beef cutouts from Brazil, Australia, Mexico or elsewhere can come into the country, be processed into chuck roasts, rib steaks, sirloins, etc., and be labeled “Product of the USA.” They’ve taken all the work that those in the industry did on behalf of U.S. producers and consumers, and basically turned it into a method to mislead consumers.
~ Montana Farmers Union and its board of directors
